The Story of Jenar
by JessicaDwyer
Summary: This is a Darth Maul fic set right before the birth of Anakin. Sidious has a plan and a young female Jedi apprentice plays a part. Please let me know what you think
1. Dark Dreaming

Disclaimer:I do not own the images of Darth Maul or Darth Sidieous (although in the case of Maul that is one big big shame)I do however stake the claim on Jenar and Kry.The great god George Lucas owns the Double Darths, I only a humble servant can borrow them for a short time.(You'd be surprised what you can do with a young nubile Sith Lord in just 5 minutes ;-)

Please be gentle as this is my first attempt at a Star Wars Fiction.I've taken some liberties in a couple of things I believe...this story takes place nine years before the events in the Phantom Menace.When I started writing this puppy…no one knew anything really about Darth Maul…so my past for him is different from what we have learned (so please don't hate me.)

Please let me know what you think...big velvet looking cloaks, horny little Sith lords, Ray Park, flames, and giant tubs of chocolate mousse can be sent to me via 

Lacroixlvr@home.com

Enjoy!

Part 1

On the dark side of the planet Sinder a storm was raging over the horizon.Sinder was a small planet whose surfaces was barren rock, except for a few oases of plant life and water.Most of the landscape was nearly black as onyx, which had garnered the planet its name.It seemed as though the planet had been burned, seared all over by a giant wash of fire.

The electrical storms that lit the night sky where frequent, but that never lessened the experience of seeing the massive blots shoot across the sky, illuminating the dark like a super nova with every charge.

This was the sight that met Darth Maul's yellow eyes as he stood at the window of his training room.The young Sith Lord breathed deeply of the cold night air as it chilled his sweat-dampened skin.His chest was bare, his black tunic having been discarded before this session of combat study.His skin was as dark as the night sky above him, all except the red, flame like Sith tattoo on his face.

He had been practicing maneuvers for the past few hours and had stopped to rest and observe the storm raging outside.The spectacle never failed to amaze him.The power it contained and the beauty of it was awe inspiring.

His master, Lord Sidious, had based his place of training and home here on this world years ago when he had taken him as an apprentice.Now Maul could not even remember his original home, only this one.He felt more akin to this planet than any other he had stepped foot upon.

The planet was small with very few indigenous life forms left on it.Also, it was near Coruscant, but not near enough to be in danger of any detection by the Jedi Council.It was a perfect choice.

Right now his master was away for a short while, playing his part in the scheme of things he had planned.

Maul shielded his eyes for a moment as one lightning bolt exploded with a particularly large flare of white.Taking another breath of night air he turned from the storm to begin his exercises again.He had rested enough for the time being.Maul picked up a quarter staff of Kelnin wood and started a series of complex twirling and parrying moves, his grace like that of a panther, muscles flexing and flowing as if in a lethal dance.

Hours later a sleek silver spacecraft arrived on the landing pad of Sidious' complex.The Sith Lord himself walked out of the ship, his black hood and robes covering all but his mouth in darkness.He was followed by two droids who doubled as bodyguards and pilots, their skin a dark chrome metal, each carrying a large blaster rifle.

Maul met him on bended knee, his head bowed in respect."Master," he said, his voice a whisper of velvet on the night wind.

"Rise my young apprentice,"Sidious replied, his voice a sharp contrast of pitch and age."I have much to tell you."

Maul rose to his feet, his black cloak billowing around him.He walked along the side of his master.Sidious turned to his student, his eyes and features hidden still by shadows."I have found a prophecy that has been kept hidden by the council for many years,"he began."It tells of a Jedi that will be born by will of the Force itself and that Jedi will bring balance to the Force."

Maul looked over at his master."Lord, does the prophecy say when this will occur?"He asked.

"No," Sidious answered, "but I sense that it is very near."

They entered the castle-like complex that served as the dark lords' lair.The entrance was a large door that slid open at their approach and then back into place with an echoing clang of metal on stone.

The complex looked as if it had formed itself from the rock with towers rising into the sky and defensive walls surrounding it on all sides.Patrols of droid soldiers were spread out along the outlying area, guarding against any kind of attack or unlucky trespasser.The whole structure was carved from the black rocks covering the planet so it would not be easily found from the air or by sensors.

Inside it was vast, going underground equally as deep as it was tall.Maul's rooms were only a fraction of the whole structure.On the bottom areas beneath the planets surface were the labs and droid making facilities.Sidious had scientists and loyal servants who were either frightened into or sympathetic to the Sith cause working on advanced weapons, robotics, and other research.

Sidious was an ancient Sith Lord who could still remember the death of his master who had held onto his life long enough to escape with his apprentice from the Jedi.He himself had been weakened and near death.He had hidden himself, his strength growing along with his anger and hatred of the Jedi who had destroyed his dark brethren.

Now he was stronger than he had ever been and his plans were working, as he wanted them to.He had found a perfect apprentice in Maul.The young lord was from an ancient race of warriors all but extinct.He had discovered him on a planet he had chosen to hide upon many years ago.The child was feral and strong.The force was so powerful in him it was nearly overwhelming.

Sidious knew this boy would be the one to continue the Sith.He began training him.Maul was wild but soon he learned to control his emotions, his anger and hate, and channel it to his advantage.Maul was one of the most skilled and deadly Sith warriors he had seen. Sidious was pleased.

So now the Sith master had discovered the prophecy of the Jedi born of no man who would bring a new balance to the force.Sidious could not let this happen.He had devised a way to fight against this new messiah of the Jedi.He would create a powerful leader, a Sith that would be the opposite of this light side being.

The master and his apprentice made their way to the cathedral like chamber of Lord Sidious.He sat down on a large, ornately carved obsidian chair. Darth Maul stood obediently waiting for his master to speak.

"I will not wait for this to occur,"The master said."I cannot stop this from happening Lord Maul, but I can fight it."He leaned forward a bit in the chair."We will fight it."

"What can I do my master?"Maul asked, his eyes glowing coals in the darkness of his hood.

"You will conceive a child,"Sideous said, an evil smile on his thin lips.

The young Sith actually had a look of surprise cross his normally composed features for the briefest of moments."Master?"He asked perplexed.

"We will create a being powerful enough in the Sith to destroy this bringer of balance," the dark lord explained. "The child will be born of your union with a female Jedi."

"My lord,"Maul began, "where will we find this female?There are no other Sith warriors."

The masters smile grew even more sinister and an evil laugh came from his throat."There is a small band of Jedi on the planet Lunaire,"he answered."They do not agree with the ideas of the Jedi Council involving themselves in the affairs of other planets.They think the Council believes itself to be above all other life forms.These Jedi are powerful, but they have many young members.We will take one of the females and bring her here.We will make her one of us, my apprentice, and then you shall have her."Sidious' low laugh dripped with malice, echoed through the high, arched ceiling of the chamber as he finished telling his student the plan.

The younger Sith's face showed no sign of emotion, but his eyes betrayed him.They burned deeper in the darkness, two yellow flames glowing with all the intensity of hell's fires.

Lunaire was a few light years from the planet Sinder.It was a peaceful planet.The lone Jedi there kept to themselves and focused on learning and training so they had few dealings with the Jedi Council.They coexisted with the animal inhabitants of their planet and lived a solitary life.Lunaire was a green world, with purple and blue colored springs and waterfalls, millions of different plants and flowers. Its beauty was well known throughout the galaxy.

The small settlement the Jedi called home was near one of the larger springs.Farms spread out along the valley, along with a few libraries, training facilities, and a school.

A festival was going to be held in three days to celebrate the harvest time.The city was decorated in multi colored displays of flowers and ribbon.Displays ran from the artistic to simply painted signs of thanks to the power of the Force.

Jenar Danel was one of the young Jedi apprentices on the planet.It was her twenty first year and she was nearly ready for the trials to become a knight.Her journey to this was hindered though by her inability to control her feelings.She would get into many arguments, some of them ending in fights with the other apprentices on Lunaire.

Her master and teacher Kry-Fa-Bane had many times threatened to end her apprenticeship, but his hopes in the girl becoming a great Jedi knight kept him from doing so.She was strong in the force, and that worried Kry. One who is strong in the force and filled with anger was dangerous.He wanted to tame her aggressiveness and teach her control.

Kry looked out the window towards the waterfall and the woods near the village and hoped the Force was with Jenar today.The celebration of Harvest was soon and she had hopes of being in the gem selecting ceremony this year.

The elder masters chose only two apprentices a year to choose from the collection of power gems to be used in making their lightsaber.They trained with a basic saber, but when the apprentice had advanced in training they created their own.So it had been on the planet for many years.It then became almost a part of the Jedi's own body.The weapon when used by a true knight was an elegant and deadly power to be reckoned with.

Kry sighed deeply and moved from the window to prepare his morning meal.He hoped all went well this day for both of them.

Jenar looked around once more making sure there was no one about.She had tried sensing out anyone who might be near her, but she never put much faith in that, knowing how some Jedi could shield themselves from being found.

Sure that no one was near; she pulled off her cloak, leggings, and tunic and dived into the cool, sapphire water of the southern spring.It felt wonderful after her morning exercises.Jenar loved bathing in the springs.It was secluded and quiet and she could relax.No other Jedi around her making her feel inadequate in their eyes and hers.

She had trained even harder this past year, more determined than ever to get her saber and advance to the next level.She shook her head, saying aloud, "I refuse to think about that now."Jenar was tense, her muscles tight.All she wanted was to get clean and feel better.She swam back over to the shore and rummaged through her pack until she found her soap.Using it she lathered her red, red hair and cleaned the sweat from her pale skin till she felt like herself again.Jenar tossed the soap back on the shore and dived under the surface, coming back up again only after she couldn't hold her breath anymore.

She let herself float on her back for a while, her mind wandering on it's own to thoughts of the dreams she'd been having recently.She had always had bizarre dreams while she rested. Jenar supposed her master Kry would call them visions.She didn't know what to call them.But lately she'd been plagued with dreams of a figure in the shadows.He'd come to her in a cloud of chilly fog, dark gray and black.His face would be obscured by the darkness but she would see his eyes clearly.His eyes...that's what Jenar would always remember in the clearness of the morning if nothing else...his eyes.They would linger in her memory for days after. How they would stare into her very soul, into her mind, branding her with their heat.

But now the dreams had changed.They had started becoming more and more real.Jenar could smell the scent of incense that surrounded him, the spice and musk of it would fill her lungs at night.She'd wake up and swear that she could smell it in the room with her.And then just a week ago he had spoke to her.This ghost in her dreams had never said a word but now she had heard his voice.Jenar felt a shiver go through her even though the water was warm and the sun was shining as brightly as ever, as she remembered the sound of his voice.A whisper of softest, deepest velvet to her ears.

Pulling her towel around her trying to get warm from the sudden chill, Jenar could remember every detail.He only spoke one word, the same word in every dream.She could see him now in her mind...those horribly beautiful yellow eyes, glowing like twin flames...the voice as he spoke to her....

"Soon."


	2. Dark Consequences

Disclaimer:I do not own the images of Darth Maul or Darth Sidieous (although in the case of Maul that is one big big shame)I do however stake the claim on Jenar and Kry.The great god George Lucas owns the Double Darths, I only a humble servant can borrow them for a short time.(You'd be surprised what you can do with a young nubile Sith Lord in just 5 minutes ;-)

Please be gentle as this is my first attempt at a Star Wars Fiction.I've taken some liberties in a couple of things I believe...this story takes place nine years before the events in the Phantom Menace.When I started writing this puppy…no one knew anything really about Darth Maul…so my past for him is different from what we have learned (so please don't hate me.)

Please let me know what you think...big velvet looking cloaks, horny little Sith lords, Ray Park, flames, and giant tubs of chocolate mousse can be sent to me via 

Lacroixlvr@home.com

Part 2

The next couple of days passed quickly for Jenar.Kry pushed her to the limits in training, some sessions going for as long as 12 hours a day.When they were finished Jenar would barely have the energy to make it into her small room before falling asleep.

The dreams came every night, no matter how tired she was.The figure in the darkness would speak to her, the same word, "Soon."Somehow these nightly visitations would make her feel better.They strengthened her in a way, this strange netherworld of night and smoky fog.The stranger with glowing eyes and rough, silk voice, made her feel less alone, less weak.

The day of selection came.The sky was bright and clear above them as Kry and Jenar made their way to the center of town.Jenar kept her head bowed as she followed Kry's tall form, but she could not help but notice the stares that followed her from some of the people in town.They all had an opinion of Kry's wild child, the orphan he took upon himself to train even though she was a lost cause.She did not give them the satisfaction of a response to these stares.She felt their eyes on her as she resolutely kept her eyes focused ahead on Kry's back.

The closer they came to the town center the more apprentices they ran into.She saw Ania and her band of followers up ahead of them.The slender blonde had always been a thorn in Jenars' side, and the cause of more than one of her fights.She was younger than Jenar and was most likely one of the two to be chosen today.She thought herself far more superior than any of the other apprentices in the town, and delighted in bating and tormenting Jenar with jibes and insults about her poor history of training.She could not let her mess up this day for her.

Kry broke into her thoughts."You must go to the gathering area with the others Jenar."He said, placing a hand on her shoulder.She turned her face up to look at him."You will do well my apprentice."He began,"You must remember control and you will do fine.Let your thoughts be unclouded by doubt and fear."

Jenar nodded and headed towards the area were the apprentice Jedi's waited before the selection began.Ania was already there.Her group was fluttering around her like moths to a flame.Jenar could sense that none of her little band of followers was nearly as strong in the Force as Ania was.That may have been part of the reason they flocked to her, hoping someway it would make them stronger.

Jenar stayed by herself watching the others come in.There would be about thirty apprentices today going in front of the elders of the village.She began breathing deeply, clearing her mind, and calming her heart.Control was the key, being calm.All she had to do was remain calm and relaxed.

She heard her name spoken loudly, as if to make sure she'd hear it.

"Jenar, look at her over there.The oldest among us I believe."

Jenar could tell without looking who it was.Anias' voice was full of mockery.Jenar ignored it.She refused to give in to the anger Ania was trying to rile.

Ania's green eyes glittered with the cruelty of youth and ambition.She knew Jenar was more powerful than she was, but she also knew her weaknesses.If she could get her blinded by doubt, Jenar would never beat her. 

With a toss of her golden blonde hair, Ania continued."I wonder if they are going to set a limit on how many times you can try, they have to be tired of telling her no by now."The others around her giggled nervously in agreement.Maybe they could feel the build up of energy on Jenar's side of the room; maybe they could sense what was about to happen if Ania did not stop her barrage of insults.

Jenar was having trouble ignoring the younger girl.She was tired of being treated this way, and it wasn't just by Ania.She remembered the looks given her by some of the elders of the town, shaking their heads as she passed by, not only today but her whole life it seemed.Hearing Ania speak as she was brought it back to the forefront of her mind.Anger was destroying any control she had built up, red-hot seething anger that had been forged through years of harsh words and harsher stares.Jenar fought with the overwhelming emotions, she had to keep a hold on them today of all days."I can't let her get to me."Jenar repeated over and over to herself, "I cannot let her get to me."She felt heat rising along her skin, and she beat it back.It was like the prickling of hundreds of needles, all at once, burning her.

Ania could tell it was working.A cruel smile crossed her full lips as she spoke again."Her master is being talked about all over the village.She's bringing him down in his standing with the elders," she laughed. "Such a hopeless case, they wonder if Kry has all his mind left to keep her on as he does."

Jenar turned in fury, unable to take anymore from her.The young Jedi around Ania gasped and backed away as they saw the look in Jenar's eyes.The strange blue had turned nearly black in her irises from sheer hatred and anger.The power was electric, it charged the air as it emanated from the girl, and it was pure darkness.

Ania was suddenly quiet.She felt the power pouring from the older girl like a wall pressing against her.She hadn't counted on Jenar fighting back.Fear, cold and tight, gripped her.

Jenars voice was low and deadly."No more," she said.With one gesture of her hand, she flung Ania back to the ground hard.

There was a cry from somewhere nearby but Jenar was focused on the whimpering blonde scrambling away from her on the floor."You never stop Ania, but I'm going to change that," she told her.

Ania was scared; tears were starting to form in her eyes.She tried using the Force to defend herself, tried to push Jenar back, but it was like a shield surrounded her.She couldn't do anything to the other Jedi from advancing on her.Ania began pleading with Jenar, her voice a babbling sob."Please...Please...I'm sorry..." 

Another gesture and it was like a fist struck Ania's left cheek.A thin line of blood streamed from the corner of her mouth.Jenar kept moving towards her, not hearing a word.Another wave of her hand and the young blonde was tossed to the other side of the room.Ania was moaning now, dazed by the attack.Jenar smiled.

"Jenar stop!" a familiar voice cried out.At the sound Jenar turned to see Kry and a group of the elders rushing towards them.Jenar shook her head clear.She saw what she had done to Ania.The younger Jedi wasn't moving, only a low moan of pain gave any indication that she was still alive.

She was in trouble.This was bad.There was no way they would let her be a knight now.The elders would never understand, let alone what Kry would say to her.Ania had gotten the better of her.She was going to have to leave and fast.With a thought Jenar called the power of Force Speed and ran in a blur away from the town center, the cries of her master to stop unheeded.

"Damn you Ania."Jenar said aloud as she ran into her room.She grabbed her pack and filled it with an extra tunic and leggings, the small data pad she used to record her thoughts and journal on, the few republic credits she had saved, and some personal things she couldn't leave behind.Quickly gathering it all up she headed to the kitchen she had shared with her master.Jenar felt guilty but she needed to eat.She wrapped a small loaf of bread, some dried meat, a small block of cheese and a flask of Alderanian brandy in a cloth.Along with that she took two sweet pastries and a silver canteen of water.This would get her through the walk to the space port on the far side of the island.

Sensing that time was short Jenar quickly hurried from the small clay house she had called home for so many years.She pulled her cowl up and made her way into the forest.At the edge of trees she looked back.Kry and a group of elders had come to the house."They must have guessed I'd come back there," Jenar thought to herself.She knew they would believe her too dangerous to let stay free.She felt sorry for Kry.He had believed in her, and when Ania had brought him into the slander that had been the last straw.But Jenar knew no one would understand that Ania had brought it upon herself.And maybe they were right, maybe she had went a little extreme on the younger girl.But that was no reason to imprison her.Jenar needed to get away, and quickly.

"Good bye master," she said softly, watching the group quickly enter the small house with their lightsabres at the ready.Jenar turned and ran into the forest.They would be searching for her.They would search the village first and then they would send for the hunters to search the forest.By then she would be near her goal.Jenar knew the forest well, and she knew how to shield herself from detection.Being an outcast for most her life she liked not being found or bothered.This had made her an expert in that area.But if they sent hunters, and she was sure they would, that skill wouldn't matter.

The hunters were a race of natives to the planet, one of the reasons the Jedi's had chosen this world.They were immune to mind tricks and influence and were skilled in the art of tracking and capturing prey.The Jedi's had chosen them as a sort of police force, to hunt down and guard the rogue Jedi's when one was discovered before the Jedi could become fully one with the dark side.There was a holding area, a kind of prison, on a small island close to the one the village was on.It was there that the captured rogues were taken and never heard from again.Jenar had seen some hunters only twice in her life.She remembered them being large, muscular men covered in animal skin.They stank of sweat and had eyes hard as rock and nearly as lifeless.She couldn't stand them then and they most definitely would not capture her now.

It was after nightfall when Jenar stopped to rest, her keen eyes could see in the darkness but only to certain point.The forest was nearly pitch black with the thickness of the tree tops blocking out the moon light and she was very tired.

She made her way to the sound of water and found a small brook.Her legs ached as did her shoulders.Thankfully it was a warm night.She couldn't have made a fire anyway for all the attention it would attract.Jenar sat down her pack and pulled off her robe, laying it on the ground.Sitting down on it she pulled the canteen from her pack and swallowed down the still cold water.Exhaustion was pulling her down into sleep.Her eyes were very heavy; she barely had the energy to wash her face in the chilly running water.Walking back from the shore Jenar punched a time on her computer wristlet to chime an alarm a few hours before dawn, it would be just loud enough to let her hear it.Too tired to eat Jenar lay down on the cushion of her robe and fell into a deep sleep.

The dream came again.The figure from the darkness was there.Smoke, cold and dark, swirled around him.She saw herself in the dream this time though.But it was herself not as she was now.She was stronger, dressed in black from head to foot.Her hair was not pulled back and pinned, but loose and worn in long waves down around her shoulders.Her dreamself looked across what seemed a great distance to the cloaked figure, her eyes pleading.She reached out her hand to him and Jenar felt the loneliness deep within her own soul she had kept hidden reach out too.A need to be with this man of shadows, a feeling of belonging with him swept over her."Please...help me…" she heard herself saying to him,"Find me..."

The golden eyes sought hers in the darkness.They met her gaze and Jenar felt the swirling smoke surround her as well.It wrapped around her like an embrace, engulfing her in it's freezing warmth."I have," the soft whisper of the figures voice said, the sound like rough velvet to her ears."Wait for me Jenar."He lifted his hand and she felt his gloved fingers touch her cheek.The sensation sent icy fire through her, and she felt a deep sorrow when it went away.The darkness swallowed him, the fog blocking him from view, taking him away from her.His voice echoed in her ears as he disappeared completely. "Wait for me."

Jenar sat up awake to the sound of her wristlet, her eyes wide.The skin on her cheek was tingling numb.She reached up and touched the chilled place were the stranger in her dream had caressed her.


End file.
